Numbers
by Sweet Honey-sempai
Summary: Five years find the Sohma family, Tohru, Uo, and Hana with changed lives. Relationships and issues of love and trust are tried and tested as ghosts from darkened pasts resurface. Is the curse really a detriment to life? YxT, KxU, HxH, SxA, RxM.
1. Four and Five

Disclaimer—I don't own Fruits Basket

Author's Notes—This fic is based off the anime, since I don't want to write a manga-based fiction until I've read it all. Some manga information will be in there, but just from volumes 1 through 9, and only select information. This means certain things: 1) Akito is a boy. I like Akito better as a boy, anyway. 2) Uo never met the one Sohma man (I've forgotten his name, mainly because a—her meeting him made me mad since Uo belongs with Kyo and Kyo alone, and b—I haven't memorized book 9 yet). 3) Other information will reveal itself as necessary. I'm making up some names, like for Yuki's parents and such. Their real names would be greatly appreciated.

Oh, and brownie points to anyone who catches two book quotes in this chapter.

* * *

Four and Five

Four. Four was an important number to Kyo.

It had been four years since his true form had been revealed to Tohru.

It had been four half-years since Yuki and Tohru had finally worked up the nerve to hold hands and go out on dates.

Four months since finally getting his own place.

Four weeks since Tohru first sported a gold ring topped with a blindingly sparkling diamond.

Four days since news reached him that Akito had passed away.

And four minutes since his car had broken down on the way to the funeral.

Kyo cursed in intervals of four seconds. His place was two hundred and forty western miles south of the Sohma main house. If he went sixty miles an hour, it would have taken him four hours to get there from his house, and he had left three hours ago.

Except now it would take many more hours, since roadside assistance seemed to be taking their good sweet time to get to him. Patience was still not a strong point for Kyo.

And to add insult to injury, the sky was threatening rain.

Kyo cursed for the fourth and final time before slamming his fist down on his horn, causing a dog to bark in one of the backyards of the neighborhood in which his car had broken down. If that dog was Shigure, there might have been cruel irony for Kyo, but Shigure still lived in that same house with the wrecked paper doors, just four miles from the Sohma main house.

Kyo looked at the clock. Four minutes after four. Angrily, he pounded the horn four more times, accompanied by four more cusses.

He hardly looked up when he heard a door slam, so lost was he in his fury at the world that seemed intent on making life miserable for him. Tohru was already talking about "Four in Four"—four babies in four years. How on Earth she was supposed to do that was lost to him. The lovebirds could not even embrace without Yuki becoming a rat, and there was no way that Tohru had the constitution for one child per year. The only way they could possibly do that was by some kind of weird test-tube birth process that would cost over twenty thousand yen that Kyo knew full well they couldn't afford.

Four bangs were suddenly heard on his window, and he turned around with a look that could make flowers wither away and die. He was met by an equally venomous stare.

"Do you mind, buddy boy? _Some_ of us have babies that need sleep! What's the brilliant idea with honking in a residential neighborhoo—"

"Yankee?"

"…Orange-head?"

* * *

Five. Five was an important number to Yuki.

Five was the age when his memories of the Sohma main house started.

It had been five years since he left the Sohma main house.

Five years since he met the love of his life.

Five months since he had bought the ring.

Five days since Akito had officially been pronounced dead by Hatori.

Five minutes since arriving at the Sohma main house with Tohru in tow.

For the funeral which would take place at five this afternoon.

Tohru was crying, naturally, and she had started five seconds ago. Kisa and Hiro were already there, and had been for five hours. Kisa had run to Tohru when she and Yuki had walked in, hugged her around the waist, and started crying, which had set Tohru off. Hiro was watching them stiffly, still slightly jealous of the sisterly affection between the two girls. Yuki fixed him with a warning eye and then wondered over to the couch, with a half-whispered, "I'll be over here," to Tohru, who nodded and kept on bawling, holding the smaller girl tightly to her chest.

"_We'll miss you when you pass away_."

Tohru had said those words four years ago, when Akito had had a stranglehold on her hair and was threatening the loss of her memories. Yuki had been scared then, his entire chest had been filled with lead. All the hate and misery stored in Yuki's soul seemed to have been weighing down on Yuki's entire being; pumping in his blood, obscuring his vision, filling his breath. He hadn't thought it was possible to hate so much before, and then he thought it wasn't possible to hate anyone more.

And then Tohru said those seven words, those eight syllables, and suddenly a great void replaced that lead of animosity and wretchedness. Even now, there was nothing. There was no inclination to mourn nor was there room left to hate. Akito's death produced no feeling in him. It was just a fact, like two and three equals five.

"Yuki-_chan_? Are you okay, honey?"

Tohru had started calling him by that pet name ever since she had gotten the ring on her finger; she said it made her feel like a real wife. As he looked up into her blue eyes, the nothingness in him began to be displaced like a brick dropped into a bucket full of water. Everything about Tohru made him happy, everything about her made his soul feel like it could take to the air and defy any and all laws of gravity. Her love, her kindness, her compassion, her philosophy, even her gullibility and ingenuousness made him want her always at his side with eyes for no other person.

Tohru had once told him that Mine believed that what Ayame feared most was nothingness. Yuki understood. How strange that such a thing should be what he shared with his brother, but it was. He felt nothing over Akito's death, and the thought scared him. Compared to Tohru, compared to anyone, Yuki felt it made him less of a human being. Feeling were what made humans sentient, apart from plants. What was he if he couldn't feel?

"Yuki-_chan_? Are you okay, honey?" Tohru repeated, leaning over him, her hands supporting her upper body as they rested on her knees.

"I'm…okay. I'm not happy but…I can't say that I'm not sad either. I just don't feel…anything."

"Oh, Yuki-_chan_…" Tohru picked up his hand and squeezed it. "It's okay, you're just unsure, I can tell. You do and don't want to hate him, is that right?"

"Yeah…yeah, it is," Yuki said slowly. "I just… It was years…years ago, and I'm an adult now. I should just be past this, shouldn't I? I hate that I can't forgive him like you can—"

"Honey…" Tohru reached forward and touched just below his shoulder, a place where Akito's whip had been particularly vicious, and the mark enduring. "Just be yourself and take things slowly. It'd be wrong of anyone to expect you to be completely recovered after everything that happened to you."

"Tohru-_chan_…" Yuki took her hand and pulled her down so her face was hovering just above his. "How did I manage to find perfection in a fiancé?"

"Oh, I'm not all that, I'm just…"

"You _are_ all that. I can always feel when I think of you. I think I'm human because of you."

"Yuki-_chan_…"

Yuki pulled her arm and the rest of her body down and kissed her. Tohru stiffened for a bit, obviously thinking of the proprieties, and then relaxed and kissed him back.

"Romance!" a thunderous, familiar voice proclaimed, entering the room from already inside the house.

"Oh!" Tohru squealed, straightening up with bone-bending speed, her face becoming a tomato. "I can't believe I…that was so improper…"

"There is nothing improper about fiancées sharing a romantic moment!" Ayame decreed, throwing his hair back over his shoulder. "Funerals serve to remind us that we must live each day to the fullest! Make hay whilst the sun shines! Carpe carpum!"

"Don't you mean, "carpe diem"?" Yuki asked flatly.

"Yes, that too!" Ayame amended without missing a beat. "Tohru-_kun_, you look lovely, as Little Brother's affianced should!"

"Oh, Ayame-_san_, it's wrong of me to dress so flatteringly at a funeral…"

"Yes, it is, isn't it?"

A sudden coldness seemed to settle on the room. Tohru could feel Yuki become rigid behind her and stand up. In a few strides he was beside her, holding her arm protectively and possessively.

"Mother. Father," Yuki said curtly, pulling Tohru back slightly.

Tohru mentally digested the appearance of Yuki's parents. Everything about them seemed dark: their hair, their eyes, their clothes, and their sullen faces that bore holes in the skulls of their children. Suddenly she knew why Yuki had never laughed in front of them. As much as it killed her to admit it, she could understand if Yuki had never even smiled in their presence. Something about them frightened her, as badly as Akito had initially frightened her, even, to some extent, more so.

"P-pleased to meet you," Tohru said uncertainly, bowing. "I'm sorry for not properly introducing myself. My name is Honda Tohru."

"Yes, we've heard," Yuki's mother said stiffly. She looked straight at Yuki. "And that's not all we've heard."

"Do you intend to marry her?" the father spoke up, fixing Tohru with a hard, unblinking eye.

"Yes." Yuki's brusque tone, if not his grasp on Tohru's arm, had to soften slightly at the idea of making the woman at his side Sohma Tohru instead of Honda Tohru.

"I don't recall approving the match," the mother spoke again.

"I don't recall asking for your approval," Yuki snapped back. "I am an adult. I make my own decisions, including who I marry."

"Mother, Father," Ayame interrupted uneasily. "I can vouch for Tohru-_kun_'s good character. She's trustworthy. She hasn't betrayed our secret for the past five years, and I doubt she'll do it now."

"I don't care about that, Ayame," the mother said boorishly. "Yuki shouldn't be marrying _outside_." She spat out the last word like a curse.

"My little brother can marry whomsoever he wants, Mother!" Ayame shouted, and Yuki stared. He had never seen his brother genuinely angry before, but he could visibly observe a level of rage slowly building up inside Ayame.

"We don't need your opinion, Ayame," their father snarled. "We've all seen _your_ choice in…_partners_."

A long beat of silence suddenly descended upon the room like a collapsed building. Tohru looked shocked beyond belief, her mouth a round "O" of surprise. She could not imagine a parent being like this with their children. Kyoko would have beaten them senseless for acting like this.

"Please, we mustn't…we mustn't fight each other like this at a funeral," Tohru said hesitantly.

"Who's fighting with you?" the father snorted callously. "Who even cares about you?"

"Shut up."

His parents' eyes turned to look at Yuki. His bangs were hiding his eyes and his skin had paled to an unsanitary shade of whiteout. His entire frame was shaking like an autumn leaf in an early-winter wind.

"What did you say?" the woman squawked.

"I said, "shut up"," Yuki elaborated, slow and threatening and sarcastic. "Don't you ever talk to my fiancé or my brother like that again. Dirtbags."

"What did you call us?" his mother screeched, like nails on a chalkboard.

"And for your information," Yuki continued stubbornly,"_I_ care about her. If you were my parents like you always claim to be, you'd respect that. You just can't handle that fact that weak little Yuki found someone who doesn't care if he turns into a rat when she hugs him. You'd have Ayame and me be miserable forever, just to keep up your little Sohma walls of self-pity and superiority complexes. I hope when you die you turn over in your graves knowing that your sons are happy in spite of your best efforts."

The mother stepped forward threateningly, and Ayame did too. The resemblance in their angry mannerisms was uncanny.

"You're not going to marry that _thing_ over there," Anda murmured ominously.

"Yuki _is_ going to marry that "thing"," Ayame put in before Yuki could speak. "She is my future sister-in-law and you _will_ treat her with due respect."

"The last time I checked, _we_ were the parents here, and you don't have the right to tell us what to do, Ayame," Anda shot back.

"Much ado about idiotic things," an aggravated voice muttered, coming into the room from the side door.

"Hatori!" Tohru gasped, seeing the stoic man walk in.

"Do I need to remind you all that you are at a funeral?" Hatori muttered agitatedly. He had barely gotten any sleep the past few weeks while tending Akito's increasing illness. "Kisa and Hiro left when you two came in, and they can hear you from two rooms away."

"Oh, Hatori-_san_, I'm so sorry, it's completely indecent of us to be arguing like this," Tohru babbled apologetically, miserably.

"I really doubt it's your fault, Tohru-_san_," Hatori said, rubbing his temples. "Anda, Gen, would you accompany me? If you stay here with your progeny I fear the funeral will be even more disrupted."

"Hatori," Gen hissed. "We have to…"

"You don't have to do anything but mourn," Hatori muttered peevishly, "which is what we're all here to do. Would you please accompany me?"

"Hatori…yes, fine, we will," Anda said, giving in. She shot the three a filthy look and stepped sideways towards Hatori. "Just don't think we're finished discussing this matter, Yuki."

"Oh, I know you'll never shut your mouths about it," Yuki grumbled. "But _you _don't think that I'm going to dump Tohru-_chan_ because you say so."

Gen flinched at Yuki's words but resolutely seized his wife's arm. "Anda. Let's go."

"Yes."

Hatori lit a cigarette as he left the room, not holding the door back for Anda or Gen. Anda noted this and scoffed at Hatori as they passed, and Hatori shut the door behind him with a barely discernible rolling of the eyes.

"I can't _stand_ those people," Ayame sniffed indignantly, tossing his hair again. "Insufferable as carbon-based life-forms go." He turned around to face Yuki and Tohru.

"Tohru-_chan_, don't ever be alone with them," Yuki warned, turning her around so they were making eye contact. "They…they're kinda like Hatori. They can't suppress memories, but they can mess with your emotions. Spend enough time with them and they'll make you hate me."

"I could never hate you!" Tohru yelped, clasping Yuki's hand fearfully.

Yuki straightened up so that he was looking at the wall. "They didn't even have to use their powers to make me hate them, so…Tohru-_chan_, just promise me you'll never be alone with them. Don't let them lead you away from me for any reason. Just stay right next to me the entire time we're here."

"O-okay," Tohru said.

"Good. Thank you." Yuki rested his hands on her shoulders and leaned down to kiss her. When he pulled back, he seized her hand and held it tenderly.

"Oh, Ayame-_san_, thank you for standing up for us," Tohru said gratefully, looking at Yuki's brother.

"Well, Little Brother did mention me when he was fighting with Mother Dear, so I will thank you for that, Yuki," Ayame replied with a flourish.

"Yeah, Ayame, why did you stand up for me?" Yuki asked, eyeing his sibling. "Against our parents, of all people, and especially when you know they'll attack you for Shigure."

"Well, aside from the fact that they're intolerable human beings," Ayame said with bitter humor, still stinging over the snub to his best friend and lover, "because you're my little brother."

"_Because you're my little brother."_

Yuki stood silently, letting his hand drop from Tohru's. Ayame had been making overblown declaration of his brotherly fondness for five years, but Yuki had never felt them to be serious, as every time Ayame followed them up with some asinine antics that seemed to negate any closeness that was occurring. But Ayame had never said those five words with a completely straight face as he had just now. Ayame's face was warm and solemn, an odd combination in any face, and most especially his.

"Only three men in existence would do that for their brothers, and first among them is me!" Ayame said, smiling, but he was lacking the goofy, hyperactive flouncing that usually accompanied such an affirmation. "What can I say? I love my little brother."

"_I love my little brother."_

Ayame had never said those words directly to his face, either. Yuki did not know whether it was the funeral or the fact that they were five years since the day Ayame decided he would single-handedly repair their sibling relationship, but something had changed.

"Well, I must be off to find 'Gure-_koi_," Ayame announced flippantly, as he had taken to calling Shigure. "Tohru-_kun_, an absolute delight to see you, as always. Yuki, shall I see you at the funeral in…" he looked at his watch "…a half hour?"

"Huh?" Yuki snapped his thoughts back to the physical world. "Oh…yes."

"I must be off to make hay!" Ayame swept from the room with a grand flourish, shutting the door behind him as he shouted across the house, "'Gure-_koi_!"

Tohru reached for Yuki's hand and held it affectionately. "Ayame really loves you, Yuki."

"Do I…love my brother?" Yuki questioned faintly. Those five words were difficult to pass through his mouth.

Tohru leaned her head on Yuki's shoulder. "Take your time…be yourself."

Five was a very important number to Yuki.


	2. Five and Six

Disclaimer-Still own nothing

Shout-outs:

Aiffe: 1) Yes, Fruits Basket does have some great fanfiction. 2) Towards the end, I actually thought I was cutting it too short! Well, it's my first FB since my new account, and my second FB overall, so I'm trying. 3) About Kureno—and thanks for telling me his name, by the way, I was curious—I've only read up to volume 9 (which was loaned to me, so it's not mine to use) in which Uo is all smitten with him and he was giving off the "I like her but we can't be together" vibe. I knew he was somehow involved with Akito, but I thought that it was Akito's usual routine of being possessive/manipulative/obsessive that he (I have to call him a he, I see Akito and think "man") pulls with the other characters. I'm not even going to attempt anything with Rin because I saw approximately two scenes with her.

silvercats: Ayame and Yuki's parents are horrible people. I don't remember everything from the mangas past volume six, but I do remember certain scenes of them beating him or pretty much telling him he was a waste of carbon (not in those exact words, though).

Haru's Black And White: Love your new name! How's it going for you?

Aiffe, purplepeopleeater, silvercats, animefreak, Nezumigirl, and Freedra Kyes: Thank you all for your wonderful reviews!

Author's Notes: No one even attempted finding the two quotes, so here they are: Ayame said, "Carpe carpum!" which is said by Katrina in the book Empress of the World. Gen said, "Who's fighting with you? Who even cares about you?" which is said by Walter in the play A Raisin in the Sun. And there was actually a third quote I forgot to mention. "Four in Four" comes from an old episode of Gilmore Girls.

Second Author's Note VERY IMPORTANT: Since I am not including Rin and Kureno, the Rooster and Horse are random Sohma. The Horse died a few years ago of old age. The Rooster is still alive, but I don't know if I'll include him/her.

* * *

Six and Two

* * *

Six. Six was an important number to Uo.

Six months since the baby was born.

Six months since the father had skipped town.

Six weeks since her wedding band officially became a regular piece of jewelry.

And six minutes since she had let Orange-head into her house once it began to rain.

"You _still_ don't like the rain?" Uo said, glancing at Kyo. Said orange-haired man was sitting stiffly on her couch, looking anywhere but at her, poised like a cat ready to take off.

"Does it look like I like it?" Kyo answered rudely.

"Don't be snarky. Tamiko isn't awake yet, I can beat the snot out of you without worrying about her."

"Tamiko's your kid, right?"

"Who else, Orange-head, my imaginary friend?" Uo replied, going to the kitchen.

"Now who's snarky, Yankee?" Kyo replied, getting up and following her.

Uo was digging around in the fridge when Kyo arrived in the adjacent dining room. She straightened up, a container tucked into the crook of her arm, and shut the door with her foot.

"Tamiko will be up soon, and she'll be hungry," Uo explained, seeing Kyo eyeing the container. "Since you're here, I don't want to breastfeed."

"Don't mess with feeding your kid just 'cause I'm here," Kyo muttered.

"It doesn't matter, she's used to the formula, anyway. The baby-sitter gives it to her when I have to work."

"Where do you work?" Kyo asked, as Uo turned to put the container on the counter.

"Two jobs. One's the convenience store I worked at in high school. The other is a halfway house for kids trying to leave their gangs and give up drugs and things like that."

"Seems like your thing," Kyo said, thinking back to when Uo had relayed her story of leaving her gang.

"Pay sucks for both of 'em, but it's enough for the bills and Tamiko's things," Uo said, shrugging. "You, Orange-head?"

"In college. I'm probably going to take over my dad's dojo."

"Cool." Uo had met Kazuma once on a coinciding visit to Shigure's house, and had liked him well enough. Kazuma seemed amused when Uo and Kyo had started fighting over eating onions, which had made both of them angry enough to start fighting again, this time over miso.

"So, you heard about Tohru and the Prince?"

"Why do you still call him that?" Kyo snarled, avoiding Uo's question.

"Same reason I call you Orange-head, Orange-head. Nostalgia. And side-step much? I take it you _have_ heard."

"Yeah, the lovebirds flit around everywhere together," Kyo grumbled. "Besides, that ring of hers is pretty hard to miss. Stare at it too long and you'll go blind."

"Yeah, the Prince went all out for her. That's sweet."

"The rat's loaded," Kyo snapped. "If that's the ring, hate to see the wedding."

"Well, probably not rich enough for Four in Four," Uo said absently. "Though I can see Tohru with four kids."

"Of course not for Four in Four," Kyo muttered peevishly. "You can barely afford one."

"Yes, well, I _am_ a single parent and not all that rich to begin with, so maybe they'll do better than me."

Kyo snorted loudly and plopped gracelessly into the single chair at the table. It looked like the furniture in Kazuma's house: unostentatious and built for a small family. It was the kind of furniture single parents or newlyweds…

"Though if that good-for-nothing ex of mine would cough up some dough for Tamiko I wouldn't have to work two jobs," Uo said, distracting Kyo from his thoughts. She turned around. "That's my chair, you know."

"I figured, you're the only adult living here."

"Yeah. I sold most of our excess furniture but I took personal pleasure in burning his chair. Tamiko did, too."

An electronic wailing suddenly filled the room. Uo's complete demeanor changed. A slightly panicked look came over her face as she dashed from the room. Kyo watched her with a curious look on his face, and then he stood tentatively and walked through the living room to one end of the hallway.

From the other end he heard Uo whisper sweet, maternal nothings to soothe Tamiko. The sincerity in her voice surprised him. Tohru was definite mother material, and even Hana seemed like she could entertain at least one child, but Uo was too reckless, too carefree to be motherly. She did not belong in the role of homemaker.

But then, even those who appeared to be mothers did not belong in the role. His own mother certainly did not fill the requirements of raising a child. If a mother is afraid of her own child, she is not capable of being a mother.

Uo appeared from the room, cradling the baby. Tamiko was not as plump as she might be, but she looked relatively healthy. She was calming down as Uo bounced her gently up and down.

"Are you hungry, Tamiko-_chan_? Mommy will get you some milk to fill your tummy." She bent her head to kiss Tamiko's forehead, and then looked up to see Kyo staring at her. "Look, Tamiko-_chan_, this is Orange-head. Can you say "Orange-head"? No? Well, how about "Dummy"?"

"Thanks, Yankee."

"Uh-uh-uh, it's "Uo" now," Uo said. "Or even "Arisa", I don't care." She bounced Tamiko again. "My Tamiko-_chan_ is never going to do drugs or rob stores or set fires or anything dumb like her mommy did. And she's never gonna know that her mommy did that until she's much, much older." She looked up at Kyo again. "Well, move outta the way, Orange-head. I gotta warm up that milk if I'm gonna give it to her."

Kyo stepped sideways and allowed Uo and Tamiko to step forward. He followed them into the kitchen and sat down at the chair just in time for Uo to say, "Oh, great."

"What?"

"Her high-chair collapsed yesterday. Just peachy. You'll have to hold her."

"What!" Kyo bristled.

"Well, I'm not holding her over the stove!" Uo shouted. "What's your problem with holding her? She's not gonna bite you."

"I said "no", Yankee!"

"I told you, Orange-head, it's "Uo", and you'll hold her or I'll strangle you with the mop like I did in high school!"

Roughly, abruptly, Uo shoved Tamiko into Kyo's chest. Instinctually he wrapped his arms around the baby's tiny body to prevent her imminent drop to the ground.

Uo straightened up and put her arms akimbo. "Oh, stop acting like it's the end of the world," she snapped, seeing Kyo's eyes squint shut and his lips press together. "She's a baby, not a time bomb."

Six seconds passed.

Another six seconds passed. Uo turned and went to the stove. She took a saucepan from the peg on the wall and set it down, and poured in some formula from the container.

Another six seconds passed. Kyo's eyes slowly peeled themselves open. Tamiko's fist was clenched firmly around his shirtsleeve, and a pair of large blue eyes stared him in the face. His grip on her gradually lessened into a loose hold around a small body sitting in his lap. He stared at her, struck dumb, his mouth hanging open.

Tamiko's mouth opened, and a loud strip of laughter flew from her throat.

"Aww, looks like Tamiko-_chan_ likes the Orange-head. Never knew you were so domestic. How cute." She lifted the saucepan and retrieved a bottle from the counter. Carefully, she began pouring the formula into the bottle.

"Yank—Uo," Kyo caught himself quickly. "I never found out…Who's…who's Tamiko's father?"

"That's the wench of it," Uo said, squeezing the bottle so two drips of formula fell on the heel of her palm. She licked it away before turning to face him. "Her lousy good-for-nothing dad was a Sohma. Sohma Seijuro." Uo turned and faced Kyo. "Funny to think you're distantly related to Tamiko-_chan_, except Tamiko-_chan_ isn't a Sohma, she's a loud-and-proud Uotani. Why so curious, Orange-head?"

"Because…because."

"Glad to see your quick wit is the same as ever." Uo crossed the kitchen and reclaimed Tamiko from Kyo's arms. "So, Tohru never told you who her dad is?"

"I only heard that you were getting married."

"Oh yeah, it was very hush-hush in his family. Y'know, if they figured I wasn't good enough to be a Sohma they coulda just not let him marry me."

"The Sohma family blows," Kyo said belligerently. "Don't let anything they do get to you, they have a special talent for trampling over people."

"So concerned, Orange-head! I'm flattered." She settled Tamiko into position and Tamiko seized the bottle with her mouth.

"Whatever," Kyo said, rolling his eyes. "I hate my family, anyway, so it's not a big deal."

"Right about now I'm hating your family, too." Uo moved Tamiko into a better arrangement in her arms. "Well, I half-hate Seijuro. He's a worthless scumbag but he gave me my daughter. Even though he wouldn't touch her when she was born. He skipped town that same night."

'No freakin' wonder,' Kyo thought. 'Figured that if Tamiko transformed he'd have to blow the Sohma secret. And Akito was still alive back then.'

"What're you staring at?" Uo asked.

"I was _thinking_, Yankee."

"You think? I learn something new everyday." Uo pulled the bottle back to let Tamiko breathe, and then gave it to her again. "What were you doing out, anyway?"

"Going to a funeral."

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"I'm not. Guy deserved to die."

"Really? Who was it?"

"Sohma Akito."

"Oh, I know that man. He hated the idea of Seijuro and I getting married. Threw a bunch of fits whenever the thought came up. That Hatori guy never let me go to the Main House 'cause of it."

"Yeah, that's understandable."

"How so?"

"Akito pulled the SS on a DD with Hatori's fiancée a couple years ago. Threw a vase at Hatori's head. That's why he's blind in one eye. The chick, Kana, had a nervous breakdown and she had…to leave." He caught himself from letting slip that she had had to get her memories erased to cure her depression.

"Yeah, well, now I kinda wish he'd've thrown a vase at Seijuro's head. Would make me feel better right about now."

"Well, too late. He died five days ago; I heard it the day after."

"I take it Tohru's at the funeral?"

"Yeah, with that rat ever at her side."

"Unrequited love, thy name is Kyo."

"Shut up, Yankee."

Uo grinned. "Sure you didn't accidentally-on-purpose break down your own car?"

"I said to shut up, Yankee!" Kyo jumped up from his chair, the hair on the back of his neck bristling as his eyes narrowed.

Uo transferred Tamiko to the crook of her left arm. Her eyes glared into a raging fire. "Touch me while I'm holding Tamiko, you stupid cat, and I swear I'll murder you and won't bother to make it look like an accident."

Kyo cringed, taken aback. "What'd you call me?"

"What, "stupid cat"? The Prince called you that all the time. And I got tired of calling you Orange-head."

"Oh." Kyo relaxed slightly and sat down. "Sorry, Yankee," he mumbled.

"What was that?"

"I said, "sorry", okay? I didn't mean to make you think I was threatening you and the kid."

"Oh, I heard that. I just thought I told you to stop calling me "Yankee"."

"Then stop calling me "Orange-head"."

"All right, fine, Kyo. Call me "Uo"."

"Fine, Uo."

Kyo watched as Uo positioned Tamiko back into her original stance and removed the bottle again to allow Tamiko to breathe.

"You're good with the kid," he said sincerely.

"Really? Thanks. My own mom ditched me when I was a kid so I'm trying to do better than she did."

"My mom ditched me, too."

"Really?"

"Well…not ditched like yours. At least yours was honest about not wanting to be there. Mine acted all motherly and nice and then she killed herself because she couldn't deal with me."

"Oh…I'm sorry." Uo blinked, taken slightly aback. "What about your dad? That Kazuma guy?"

"First off, don't be sorry about my mom; wasn't your fault. It was hers."

"Harsh."

"Shoe fits. And Kazuma adopted me after mom died."

"What about your real dad?"

"Hates my guts." Sohma fathers, Kyo noted, had a way of siding with Sohma mothers and not Sohma children. His dad hated him; Momiji's dad had his own son erased from his wife's memories. Although in Uo's case, the Sohma father had a way of siding with himself.

"Well, that trumps _my_ dad being an alcoholic," Uo said, walking over towards Kyo. "So, you won this round of Who-Had-The-Most-Tragic-Childhood."

"Not sure I wanna win that."

"Well, no one does." Uo pulled the bottle from Tamiko's mouth, set it on the table, and began burping Tamiko over her shoulder. "Y'know, Tohru's mom, Kyoko, was more a mom to me than both my parents put together. I got nearly beat to death by my gang when I tried to leave them, and she came and beat up three of them just to rescue me." Tamiko belched, and Uo settled her back into her arms. "Y'know, Kyoko woulda liked you. She'd muss with your hair, like so." She shifted Tamiko into one of her arms, and with her free hand began ruffling Kyo's hair.

"Stop it, Uo," Kyo said, swatting at her hands.

"She'd do it until you were good and angry," Uo continued.

"Which doesn't take long!"

"And then she'd laugh at you, and break your spine with one of those bear hugs of her. Like so."

"No, don—!"

Uo's free arm snaked around Kyo neck and pressed him into her chest.

Six seconds passed.

POP!

* * *

Two. Two was an important number to Hatsuharu, if only for the fact that he had two personalities.

And the two textbooks that felt like they weighed two tons in his arms. Seriously, Yuki had felt lighter than they did right now.

"You desire help?"

Hatsuharu jumped and turned around. Standing behind him, her arms free from everything but a small bag, was Hanajima Saki.

"Oh, hi, Saki."

"I'd prefer it if you called me "Hana"," Hana said. "Only Shigure and my family call me by my first name."

"Okay, Hana. Then I'm Haru."

Hana glanced at his text books. "You did not answer my question. Do you desire help?"

"Yeah, that'd be nice," Haru said, raising his arms so the top book slid easily into Hana's waiting hands.

"This book," Hana stated blandly, looking at the text in her arms. "I took that class last year. Why did you decide to take it?"

"Oh, Psyche," Haru said, glancing at the title. "Trying to figure out why I'm a schizophrenic."

"I _knew_ I sensed two different personality _denpa_ from you," Hana stated matter-of-factly.

"Really? When?"

"In High School, you were in frequent run-ins with Takei Mokoto. I could sense your violent side in constant conflict with your peaceful side. The former usually dominated the latter."

"Yeah, I've been trying to work through that. I put Takei in a hospital for two weeks once. Had a time of it trying not to get convicted."

"I remember that. Tohru went spare about it."

Haru chuckled. "Good ol' Tohru. Y'know, I was the second person who knew Yuki was going to propose to her. Yuki was the first, of course."

"Are you close with Yuki?"

"Yep. I was his first friend. Funny thing he should tell _me_, though."

"Why is that?"

"Since I've been very up-front with the fact that he was my first love."

"Really."

Haru glanced over at her. "That your reaction? Most people see me fawn over Yuki and flip out."

"Why should I? It's not my place to judge."

Haru began toying with a lock of his bangs. "And it's not even like I only like guys. I like girls, too."

"So do I."

Haru stopped, Hana continued. He had not expected those words to pass from Hana's mouth.

"'Scuse me?"

"Perhaps it was just because she was the first person besides my brother to pray for my happiness, but since Middle School I have loved Tohru."

"Whoa, wait," Haru said, jogging to catch up with her. "Do you like _girls_, or do you like _Tohru_?"

"That, I have not quite figured out."

"Aren't you a Psychic? Can't you figure it out?"

"The mind is a layered thing—at least, in most cases," Hana said, thinking of the Prince Yuki Fan Club. She had heard in passing that the Fan Club now worshipped images of Yuki since the real thing had graduated. "It is very easy to confuse yourself, or to tell yourself that it does not matter."

"So, are you upset that Tohru is getting married to Yuki?"

"A very wise person told me long ago that to truly love someone is to put their feelings before your own."

"That's an awful roundabout way to answer a question."

"An even worse way is to answer with a question, which I refrained from doing."

"Why, what were you going to ask me?"

"Are _you_ upset that Tohru is getting married to Yuki?"

Haru breathed sharply from his nose. "Honestly? Yeah. But not because I love Yuki. I mean, I was a kid; those romances don't last forever. It's just that _them_ being together reminds me _I'm_ not with anyone."

"Have you ever had a steady romance?"

"Two, I think. Didn't work out." Haru failed to mention that the girls he trusted with the zodiac secret had promptly needed to have their memories erased. Not even because Akito had ordered it. Simply because they could not handle the fact that their boyfriend turned into a cow when hugged. "How about you?"

"Never. I think I frightened people."

Haru laughed. "Yeah, I think so too. Everyone in my grade talked about you." He stretched his back and crossed his arms behind his head. "Isn't this weird. You and I barely talked in High School and here we are spilling our guts to each other like this."

"When the soul wants to talk, it talks to whomever listens," Hana said sagely.

"Well, we should do this more often." Haru stretched again and brought his arm down, this time looking at his watch. "Oh, shoot. I have to go."

"Where are you headed?"

"I have to go to a funeral."

"I'm sorry for your loss."

"Well, it's not really my loss. I wasn't close with the guy, and he was a real a—hole from what I heard. But he was the head of my family, so it's only right I go."

"I suppose. Shall I see you tomorrow, then?"

"My first class ends at two in the afternoon. You?"

"The same."

"Meet me out in the courtyard. Maybe our souls will feel like talking again."

"I look forward to it."


End file.
